FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - [Aug 5 2011] AA 41: Evacuated Upon Landing Due to Tire Fire
Old Aug 6, 2011 | 4:14 pm
  #30  
Eye of Storm
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: CMI (Champaign, IL)
Programs: AA, WN, UA
Posts: 268
Originally Posted by flymeAAway
In 1980 a Saudi Airlines L-1011 landed just after takeoff after a reported fire. After landing, the pilot took the time to taxi all the way to the penalty box and sat for 3 minutes, engines running, with no evacuation. A flash fire erupted shortly thereafter killing all 301 aboard.
Wow. A description of the incident here (scroll about 3/4 of the way down) says that because the intended landing location (Jeddah, sea level) was at substantially different altitude from the actual landing location (Riyadh, 2100 feet, where the flight took off from), and because the crew didn't reset the pressurization system before the landing, the cabin door couldn't have been opened due to the pressure differential. "Even when the cabin crew tried to open the doors, the cabin differential pressure prevented the plug type doors from opening".

Does anyone know... is there a manual override for such a situation today, 30+ years later?
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